Heralds 10 questions that face Argyle

The dust is starting to settle at Plymouth Argyle after the departure of Derek Adams and assistant manager Paul Wotton.

The attention is now switching to the Pilgrims’ crucial final game of the season, against Scunthorpe United at Home Park on Saturday (5.30pm).

The Pilgrims slid into the League One relegation zone after their 5-1 thrashing at Accrington Stanley.

However, they could still stay up depending on their result against Scunthorpe and how the two teams immediately above them in the table – Southend United and AFC Wimbledon – get on.

While that is the immediate priority for Argyle there are a lot of questions surrounding the managerless club now.

Why now?
The club’s board of directors, under the control of majority shareholder Simon Hallett, clearly must have felt there was a better chance of Argyle beating Scunthorpe without Derek Adams as manager than with him.

Hallett took to social media site Twitter on Saturday night to describe the dismal events at Accrington as ‘a dreadful result’ as he expressed the feelings of the whole Green Army.

With Kevin Nancekivell in charge for the visit of relegation rivals Scunthorpe there is now likely to be a more positive, less confrontational mood around Home Park.

That should give the players a better chance to get the result they need to achieve – and then hope for help from elsewhere.

Why put Kevin Nancekivell in charge?
The club relieved Adams and Wotton of their duties with immediate effect on Sunday night, but kept on the 47-year-old first team coach.

His future beyond the end of the season could be up in the air but, for the time being, he has the responsibility of picking the team for one of Argyle’s most important matches in recent history.

Nancekivell knows the players well from working with them on a daily basis and they know his ways.

It keeps some consistency to what has been a turbulent couple of days, with someone who cares passionately about the club at the helm.

Argyle could have potentially tried to bring in a manager on a one-game basis, such as Ian Holloway, but Nancekivell is a safe pair of hands and the better bet in this situation.

What are the financial ramifications for the club?
Adams signed a new five-year contract last May after narrowly leading Argyle into the League One play-offs.

It is likely to have included break clauses, on either side, and stipulations on what should happen in certain scenarios, such as the club deciding to remove Adams from his role.

So it would be highly surprising if Argyle had to pay up the remaining four years of his contract to Adams.

Nonetheless, there will be a cost involved and the question for the club now is whether that will have an impact the playing budget for the new manager.

Wotton, meanwhile, signed a two-year contract when he stepped up to the role of assistant manager from first team coach last May.

What responsibility for this falls on the players?
A lot of it. Adams has received a lot of criticism over recent weeks after the slump in results and performances – some of it fairly, some of it not.

But there is truth in the old saying that ‘once the players cross the white line’ there is not much a manager can do, certainly in terms of attitude.

The Pilgrims’ squad showed in January and February what they were capable of, with some excellent results.

So for the same group, give or take, to perform the way they have done recently, and especially at Accrington, is extremely disappointing.

Now Adams, the lightning rod for a lot of the fans’ criticism has gone, the spotlight falls squarely on the players.

Who will decide on Argyle’s retained list?
Once a season ends, one of the first tasks for any EFL club is to announce their retained list.

Many players will be under contract but others, including most of the young professionals, will be without deals and decisions on whether they will be offered new ones have to be made.

Without Adams – who was also Argyle’s head of football as well as first team manager – who decides on that?

It is likely to fall, at least in part to Nancekivell, who knows the strengths and weaknesses of the players.

It is also possible that Adams would have suggested to the board before his departure his plans regarding the retained list and they could stick to something along those lines.

Will Argyle appoint another head of football?
The role of head of football at Argyle was created when Adams signed his contract extension last May.

It gave control for all football decisions, from academy upwards, to the Scotsman.

Now, people are wondering whether it placed too much responsibility and pressure on the shoulders of Adams.

Even for someone so absorbed in football 24/7 it must have been a difficult task for him.

It is safe to assume that if Argyle do appoint another head of football it will not be the new first team manager.

Will this lead to wholesale changes to the squad this summer?
There was a strong possibility of that even before the departure of Adams.

Ruben Lameiras is out of contract while 18-goal top scorer Freddie Ladapo, who has a deal until the summer of 2020, is likely to attract interest from other clubs.

Graham Carey could also move on, especially if the Pilgrims drop into League Two.

However, the uncertainty over the managerial position at the moment, leaves the club vulnerable to losing other players too.

When will the new manager be appointed?
In theory, there is no immediate rush because Nancekivell is in charge on Saturday and pre-season is not planned to start until June 26.

Appointing a manager is one of the most important tasks for the board of directors so they need to do all their due diligence before making their pick.

But as already discussed Argyle are likely to have to revamp their squad again this summer so the successor to Adams would want to be in place sooner rather than later.

If the club can quickly identify a preferred candidate it would be in the interests of both parties to get a deal done before people start leaving for their summer holidays.

How will the fans react on Saturday?
Was there ever any doubt about this? Home Park is set to be a sell-out for Argyle supporters, who have been busily snapping up the last remaining tickets.

With Scunthorpe not filling the away section in the Barn Park End, that means extra tickets have been available to the Green Army.

With Nancekivell in charge, and the team still having a shot at saving themselves from relegation, the atmosphere at the start is likely to be tremendous.

How it goes from then on, of course, depends on how Argyle get on, as well as Wimbledon at Bradford City and Southend at home to Sunderland.

Will Argyle still visit the Netherlands in pre-season?
It became a tradition under Adams for Argyle to travel to Delden in the Netherlands for a pre-season training camp towards the end of July.

It has already been booked in for July 21-July 26, with likely games at Home Park on either side, on July 20 and 27.

Whether the new manager will be happy to abide with those arrangements, or whether there will even be any scope to change then, remains to be seen.

Overseas pre-season tours are now common place, even for lower division clubs, so a Dutch trip could be a good way for Adams’ successor and his probable new-look squad to get to know each other better.

Whoever the new gaffer is, they will have much work to do when they arrive and get settled in.

its awkward